Mississippi State, Georgia Set for Top-15 SEC Showdown in Athens
ATHENS, Ga. — Mississippi State and Georgia will meet in a highly anticipated top-15 SEC softball series this weekend at Georgia’s home field. The Bulldogs from Mississippi State, ranked No. 11/12, will face No. 15/13 Georgia in three games beginning Friday evening.
The series kicks off with a nationally televised game on SEC Network at 5 p.m. CT Friday. The final two games are scheduled for 1 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, both streamed on SEC Network+.
Mississippi State enters the series with a 28-4 record and a 1-2 mark in SEC play. The Bulldogs recently handed No. 1 Tennessee its only loss of the season in a series that included a walk-off victory. Georgia, with a 21-7 record and a 1-2 SEC record, did not play last weekend during its SEC bye, but played midweek games on March 10 and 18.
The Bulldogs’ pitching staff ranks among the best nationally, averaging 10.2 strikeouts per game over their last 10 outings and leading the nation in total strikeouts. They also rank first or second nationally in several categories, including ERA, fielding percentage, strikeout-to-walk ratio, and strikeouts per seven innings.
Mississippi State’s Alyssa Faircloth has struck out 137 batters this season, ranking third nationally, and has a strikeout rate of 46.4 percent. Alongside Peja Goold, Faircloth has surpassed 100 strikeouts in fewer innings than most in program history. The Bulldogs have outscored opponents 39-10 in the sixth inning and beyond this season.
Redshirt freshman Taylor Troutman hit a walk-off home run against Tennessee last weekend, going 2-for-2 with three extra-base hits as a pinch hitter. Des Rivera leads the team with four sacrifice flies, tying for fourth in school history, and is one of seven players nationally without a strikeout this season. Defensively, MSU maintains a .989 fielding percentage with just nine errors in 32 games.
Georgia, ranked as high as 11th by Softball America, holds a 21-7 record and is 1-2 in SEC play. Led by head coach Tony Baldwin, the Bulldogs have a batting average of .359 and a team ERA of 3.40. Senior Sarah Gordon, batting .486, leads the team with 11 doubles and was named national player of the week earlier this season.
The series marks a key point in the SEC schedule, with Georgia last hosting Mississippi State from May 3-5, 2024. Georgia’s fielding percentage of .987 ranks second nationally. After this weekend, Mississippi State will host UT Martin on March 25 before welcoming South Carolina for a three-game series starting March 28.
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